Lightest Waterproof 4-Season Tent??
Any suggestions on best 1 or 2 person tent that is waterproof, light and able to endure winter conditions?
Tarptent Scarp might be one possibility.
"Throw a loaf of bread and a pound of tea in an old sack and jump over the back fence." John Muir on expedition planning
Google is your friend. If you had Googled that it would be faster and you would already have a good answer with options. What you are doing is akin to standing under a street sign asking what street your on.Originally Posted by BostonBlue
Well, a 4 season tent ought to be waterproof pretty much by definition. You'll need to define what you mean by "winter" before you'll get good answers, though. Winter in the Presidentials is a little different from winter on the Florida Trail. If you're in Boston and you'll be hiking in NH or ME in winter then there aren't too many really light tents that will hold up. The Scarp might do it if you site the tent properly. Otherwise start looking at the Hilleberg Black Label tents. The Nammatj 2 is only 2 kg packed, which is pretty light for a winter tent.
Mountain hardwear direkt 2
Black Diamond Firstlight...
I did google this first. Also took a look at REI and Amazon. Try it yourself and see how much information you can obtain while filtering through all the ads and less than stellar claims. I was under the impression that one of the many purposes of WB was to discuss equipment and receive honest opinions from members.
To everyone who helped, I greatly appreciate it.
Look at Stephenson warmlite tents, I've had mine for 17 years. Still going strong
As long as you don't mind paying TOP DOLLAR, with atrocious after sale service/warranty service.
Last edited by Lyle; 05-12-2013 at 08:12.
Yep, defining what type of winter conditions you expect to encounter makes an enormous difference to the suitable options.
Light 4-season tent is an oxymoron. If you are looking for a tent that is adequate for the conditions on the AT take a look at the Big Agnes Flycreek UL 1 - 3. Very popular on the trail, very light, not tooo expensive.
Second this, it all depends what kind of winter conditions you plan to encounter. I hike year round in CT, MA, and southern NY which are all relatively low elevation and have always been happy my three season tent and my zero degree sleeping bag. If I were to hike farther north or in more exposed mountainous areas then I would need to get a heavy duty winter tent. In practice, mostpeople who do serious winter camping have a heavier very reliable winter tent and then have a much lighter tent for three season camping.
Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.
BB, when I saw your thread I was hoping that someone would give you a good answer. A few years back I tried to find a family size, two adults and two kids, winter tent that I could lift and wouldn't break the bank. I ended up getting a Eureka Mountain Pass 3 but was never very happy with it.
As you probably have learned, anything that will take snow is pretty heavy. The best snow designs are A-frames but the trade off is that they are a problem in windy conditions. Still, the old Eureka Timberlines were quite good in snow and sturdy when staked down well. I may go back to that design when the one I bought wears out.
I am experimenting with Tipi designs made of silnylon and am pleased with the weight to strength ratio, when natural material can be found for poles or suspension. There are several commercial versions available. Golite has some nice designs that you might like.
Another vote for the tarptent scarp.
If I were shopping for a proven winter tent, I would be looking for the largest solo tent or the smallest 2 person tent with proven winter survivability qualites. Two doors, large vestibules, adequate ventilation, room for you and your gear to ride out a storm. Weight would be low on my priority list. You Tube has a lot of videos of tents that work in winter and some that don't.
Tipi Walters, of this forum, has a lot of good advice on winter tents.
A Hilleberg 2 person 4 season tent is a good place to start looking and a good yardstick to judge other tents by.
Did you look at Outdoor Gear Labs reviews and videos?
I own a great little winter tent. My only complaint: at 20 sq. Ft. It is small. I should have bought a larger tent. I made the mistake of picking the lightest of 3 tents I was considering. I won't do that again.
Wayne
Thank you for all the suggestions. Greatly appreciated!
Anyone shopping for a winter tent may find this Outdoor Lab testing series interesting.
http://www.outdoorgearlab.com/4-Season-Tent-Reviews
I would add that a good, bombproof tent is only the beginning of a complete winter backpacking kit. Actually, the tent may be the second item selected after choosing a proper winter sleeping bag.
Wayne
Eddie Valiant: "That lame-brain freeway idea could only be cooked up by a toon."
https://wayne-ayearwithbigfootandbubba.blogspot.com
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No, not really. Many 4 season tents are named such that you'd believe they're for all 4 seasons when in fact they're really only good for one season, the 4th season. Black Diamond has some tents like this, and their older fabric was notorious for this. They were fantastic in the 4th season, but problematic if it rained.
Understood. My hiking partner has done a lot of serious winter stuff up north like dog sledding, and his winter shell is just a tightly woven cotton anorak. Works great when the temps never get above freezing. I guess this comes back to the definition of winter, or 4-season -- around here, a winter tent had better be able to handle rain and lots of it.
Lots are good replies in this thread.
- define winter conditions
- three season tents can be used in New England winters if you camp in sheltered locations below treeline and are willing to wake up in the middle of the night to brush off large snow acculations; also need to be very conscious of venting since many three season tents do not have dedicated roof vents.
- four season tents are designed to handle wind and snow loads that three season tents can not handle
- some tents are really single season winter tents; the tent materials are designed to breathe in low temperature conditions and are not "water proof"; buyer beware
- you will want some room for all that winter gear, so a 2 person tent is really a solo tent
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